Recently I read a forum post of a man having a rudder pin snap. He was advised from a posting by a dealer that there is a spare pin under his 8inch hatch cover. I checked my hatch and no spare pin. I contacted Hobie and they said I have to tell dealer and they won't send a replacement pin. Why do I have to go 40miles to get a spare $2.00 pin. This is second time I had dealings with Hobie of an issue and very dissatisfied. POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE!!!

You would rather drive hundreds or possibly thousands of miles to us? I very much doubt FORD would have you come to their factory door in Detroit for customer service... same thing. Email, phones, mail and FedEx are preferred for this sort of thing. Driving is not necessary unless you need it right away and then... the dealer again is the best choice, unless you just happen to be closer to our factory (we do allow dealer order parts to be picked up by consumers here). Your dealer is likely much closer to you than we are for mailing / shipping too.

Dealers are your primary contact for many (good) reasons.

The pin can be sent direct to you from us if needed, but an order for it, confirmation of the issue, confirmation of the ownership of the kayak, purchase date and for so much more... has to be through a dealer.